Peach Upside Down Cake

Some Kentuckians may be surprised to learn that winemaking in our Commonwealth has deep roots that began with the 1796 emigration of Jean-Jacques Dufour (later known as John James Dufour) from Switzerland. In 1798, he settled in central Kentucky with the intention of starting a vineyard in what is now Jessamine County. More than 200 years later, Kentucky is home to around 65 vineyards and wineries.

Wine aficionado and author P. Faye Collins, along with Chef Lee Ann Rose, has released Vineyard to Table: Cooking With Kentucky Wine, which features the history of wine in America and our state, cooking tips and techniques, and an assortment of recipes using Kentucky wine, just a sample of which are included here. Cheers!

Peach Upside-Down Cake

This fresh and tasty variation of a pineapple upside-down cake is a quick and easy recipe. Those who want an even easier recipe may use a boxed yellow cake mix and add 1 teaspoon vanilla.

Serves 12-18  

Cake

2 cups cake flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup butter

1 cup sugar, sifted

3 egg yolks

1 teaspoon vanilla

¾ cup milk

Peach Topping

¼ cup unsalted butter, melted

½ cup packed brown sugar

¼ cup peach wine

1½-2 cups frozen peaches

Cake

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Sift flour, baking powder and salt.

3. Cream together butter, sugar and egg yolks. Add vanilla.

4. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture 1/3 at a time, alternating with the milk.

5. Set batter aside and mix peach topping.

Peach Topping

1. Pour melted butter evenly over the bottom of a 9- by 13-inch cake pan.

2. Sprinkle the brown sugar evenly across the pan, then stir in the wine. Arrange the peaches on the bottom of the pan.

3. Pour the batter over the peaches.

4. Bake for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

5. Let cool and invert the cake onto a platter.

Recipes and images from Vineyard to Table: Cooking With Kentucky Wine by P. Faye Collins with Lee Ann Rose, published by Butler Books.

To order the book, visit butlerbooks.com.